US seeks to raise military, economic aid to RP

WASHINGTON — The Bush administration has asked the Congress for a significantly higher budget of $164 million for military and economic assistance in fiscal year 2005 for the Philippines, "a steadfast ally (of the US) in the war against terrorism."

The requests were included in the State Department’s $8.552-billion appropriations budget for fiscal year 2005, which starts on Oct. 1 and ends on Sept. 30, 2005.

The main items requested for the Philippines were $35 million in economic support funds ($20 million in FY 2004) to help Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members and their families and $30 million in foreign military financing ($17 million in FY 2004) to modernize and reform the Armed Forces of the Philippines and reinforce its counter-terrorism training.

The Bush administration also requested $26 million in development assistance ($23 million in FY 2004), $28 million in child survival and health funds ($22 million in FY 2004) and $3 million for international military education and training (IMET) for the Philippines.

Half of the $35 million economic support funds will be used to continue existing programs devoted to economic reform, good governance and poverty alleviation — particularly for former MNLF combatants and their families in Mindanao. The other half will be used to extend those programs to an additional 12,000 MILF combatants and their families.

Ambassador to Washington Albert del Rosario said in a statement Saturday that the budget profile for the Philippines covers a wide range of programs, indicating that the nature of RP-US relations under the Arroyo administration has become broad, deep and diverse.

"It also reaffirms the United States’ recognition of the Philippines’ vital role as a ‘front-line’ ally in the global war on terror," he said.

The Philippines now ranks as the world’s fourth top recipient of US foreign military financing and is the world’s second biggest beneficiary of the US IMET program, del Rosario said.